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There are over 900 recipes in this site’s archives, [which is completely nuts, but also conveniently gives me an answer to the ever-present “what do you do all day?” question besides my usual, “mess around on Instagram?”] and while I’m overwhelmingly quite fond of all of them, there are ones that nag at me not necessarily because they don’t work but because they’re not, in hindsight, the “best in category” I once found them to be. Among these are the chicken pot pies I made from Ina Garten’s beloved recipe six years ago, and somewhere, my friend Ang is gasping because these are, to date, her favorite thing I’ve ever made for dinner. But I always thought they could have been better for several persnickety reasons.

First, instead of braising the chicken in that delicious veloué sauce you’re making, Ina has us roast chicken breast until they’re fully cooked, cool them, dice them and then add them to the sauce. But why? I asked Ina, but my book didn’t answer. That’s not the only extra step. Vegetables such as carrots, peas and those persnickety pearl onions are each blanched for two minutes in water before being added to the pot pie base, which baffled me even then. Why not just cook them in that finger-licking stew, too, and let them drink up all that awesomeness? My third quibble with the recipe is that for four servings of pot pie, the soup part alone uses 12 tablespoons (that’s 3/4 cup or 170 grams; it does not include the additional cup of butter used for the four pastry lids) of butter, and guys, I think it’s been fairly well established, perhaps even 900 times, my fondness for butter, but this is just … I cannot. When I created my own anything-but-abstemious pot pie recipe a few years ago for my cookbook, my filling only need 3 1/2 tablespoons butter for four portions to give you a nice rich sauce. Finally, I’d found that the sauce didn’t thicken well but assumed I’d done something wrong. A scroll through the comments that have arrived since indicates that it’s not just me.

Now, do understand, this does nothing to mitigate my Number One Fan Status of Ina Garten. Ina, call me! Let’s have lunch! I promise, I’ll behave better this time! I’ll try to stop doing weird things like signing my name snugged up against yours on the wall of stores where we’ve both signed books. (Wait, did I just admit that?) But it did mean that when my husband told me last week that he’d been craving chicken pot pie, I knew I wanted to make it, just not that one.

Back to the drawing board, I merged together the things I’d learned making my own pot pies, such as a dreamy flaky pastry lid, a thickening tip from Julia Child’s beef bourguignon, plus another archive gem, Cook’s Country’s chicken and dumplings, with a pot pie-like base to create my own ultimate chicken pot pie. Everything is cooked inside the same pot. There are (hopefully) no persnickety steps or ingredients. And, no, I did not hold the butter, but I also tried not to smother us with it. I hope you love them as much as we do.

An Almost-Vegetarian Pot Pie:Pancetta, White Bean and Swiss Chard Pot Pies. Yes, I know, the pancetta. I went back and forth over this when writing the book and concluded it was good with or without the pancetta. Without it, it’s a delicious vegetarian pot pie, hearty and perfect, and you won’t miss the pork.

The one unusual trick I use in this recipe is to add the thickening portion (a mashed butter-flour roux) at the end, rather than the earlier parts of cooking. I found that the chicken cooked better in a thinner sauce, and that the thickening was more likely to hold up when added at near the end. Plus, you can really taste the richness in the final dish, hooray.

Note: I forgot the leeks and the parsley because these things happen. It would have been better with leeks; we missed them.

Make pastry lids: In a large, wide bowl (preferably one that you can get your hands into), combine the flour and salt. Add the butter and, using a pastry blender or your fingertips, cut them up and into the flour mixture until it resembles little pebbles. Keep breaking up the bits of butter until the texture is closer to uncooked couscous. In a small dish, whisk together the sour cream, vinegar, and water, and combine it with the butter-flour mixture. Using a flexible spatula, stir the wet and the dry together until a craggy dough forms. If needed, get your hands into the bowl to knead it a few times into one big ball. Pat it into a flattish ball, wrap it in plastic wrap, and chill it in the fridge for 1 hour or up to 2 days. Meanwhile…

Make filling: Generously season all sides of the chicken parts with salt and freshly ground black pepper. If your chicken breasts are particularly large, I find that halving them can ensure they cook at the same pace at the other parts. Heat first glug of olive oil over medium-high heat in the bottom of a large Dutch oven (minimum of 4 quarts; mine is 5). Brown chicken in two parts, cooking until golden on both sides. Transfer to a plate and repeat with second half of chicken. Set aside.

Heat second glug of olive oil in the same pot. Add onions and leeks, season with salt and pepper, and saute them until softened, about 7 minutes. If using, pour in sherry and use it to scrape up any bits stuck to the bottom of the pan. Simmer until mostly cooked off. Add milk or cream, chicken broth, thyme and bay leaf and bring to a simmer. Nestle the browned chicken and any accumulated juices into the pot. Cover and gently simmer to 30 minutes, after which the chicken should be fully cooked and tender.

Transfer the chicken to a cutting board to cool slightly. Discard the bay leaves. Allow the sauce to settle for a few minutes, then skim the fat from the surface using a wide spoon; reserve it for another use, or this:

In a medium bowl, mash butter (feel free to replace any part of it with skimmed chicken fat from the previous step, thanks to a commenter below for the suggestion) and flour together with a fork until a paste forms and no flour is still visibly dry. Pour one ladleful of filling over it, and whisk until smooth. Add a second ladleful, whisking again. Return this butter-flour-filling mixture to the larger pot, stir to combine, and bring mixture back to a simmer for 10 minutes. The brothy base should thicken to a gravy-like consistency. Adjust seasonings, if needed.

Add carrots and peas to stew and simmer for 3 minutes, until firm-tender. Shred or dice the chicken, discarding the bones and skin or saving it for another use. Return chicken to stew and re-simmer for 1 minute. Stir in parsley.

Assemble and bake pies: Heat your oven to 375 degrees F.

Divide chilled dough into quarters. Roll each quarter out into rounds that will cover 4 2-cup ovenproof bowls or baking dishes with a 1-inch overhang. Cut vents into rounds. Ladle filling into four bowls, filling only to 1 to 1 1/2 inches below the rim to leave room for simmering. Whisk egg with water to make an egg wash. Brush edges of bowls with egg wash, or if you like lids that easily lift off your bowls and are willing to risk that they may slip slightly into the bowl when baking, you can skip this. Place a lid over each bowl, pressing gently to adhere it to the outer sides of the bowl. Brush the lids with egg wash. Bake until crust is bronzed (more than mine, please, if nobody in your family is having a hangry meltdown) and filling is bubbling, 30 to 35 minutes.

Do ahead: The dough for the lids can be made up to 3 days in advance and chilled. The filling can be made up to a day in advance and re-warmed before assembling and baking the pot pies.

Molly — Wait, were they really skinny and looked like scallions? Because I got those, thought they were scallions, got annoyed, didn’t use them, made the pies, missed the leeks I’d normally put in a lot. (Yes, all in one sentence.) I’d say 2 cups, or more, if you like them as much as I do.

Katie — These are part of the dish set (now discontinued) we got via our wedding registry. I’ve bought extra bowls (in weird) colors from Replacements.com over the years. I’m sure there are easier to get ovenproof bowls. A lot of mass-produced dishes these days are ovenproof and I always look for it because you never know when it will come in handy.

Looks great! Because I am a lazy person I usually grate frozen butter into the dry ingredients when making scones or other pastries. It’s certainly faster than cutting the butter in, and it has pretty good rise, too. :)

I’m sure there are, I work in a kitchenware store so I should know but I cannot honestly say if we sell (good) ovenproof bowls off the top of my head, haha…thanks for answering my question, now I’m starstruck ;)

I absolutely love the “lids” from your cookbook pot pie, and it is now my go-to savory crust. I usually wing the insides with what I have on hand but will def. try the thickening trick here next time. FWIW I use fiestaware soup bowls for this and they work just fine.

I have one leftover pie crust (your all butter recipe) staring at me in my freezer whenever I open the door. Any reason you’d advice against using that instead of the lid recipe here? Also the only oven-proof bowls I have are ramekins which seem much smaller than your bowls .. 6 portions with this recipe, you think?
Thanks!

Well, I guess I know what (to tell my husband to) do with the leftover roast chicken from last night’s dinner! I’ll have to fiddle with steps and directions but shouldn’t be too difficult – and it helps that he makes a mean pie crust!

So far, I have yet to find a recipe in that cookbook that wasn’t fantastic. I particularly love the mix & match cobbler recipe from the dessert section. I latched on to the cookie-dough topping paired with blackberries, and it’s all I can do to keep people from licking the pan when I bring it to pot lucks.

Oh, man. I just got back from the Hawk’s Head Publick House in Oak Glen after a weekend of apple picking. Their chicken pot pie is amazingly good, and your chicken pot pie recipe just pops up?! Once Los Angeles isn’t so bleeding hot, I’m making this.

Deb, Thanks for sharing your updated version. Funny enough I made a pot pie on Friday based on Ina’s recipe, but wanted to use the bulk of a leftover whole chicken. Like you, I followed a similar method to cook the veggies, build the sauce and reheat the chicken in the rich stock and herbs too. I hadn’t throught to add the roux later on, but will try that next time. I also added mushrooms, celery, a leek and a red potato. The end result had that luxurious velvety mouth feel, everything was tender and delicious together. I look forward to trying your recipe next time!

Have you tried Better than Buillion paste? It’s perfect since you can make as much or little as needed, control the intensity of chicken flavor and takes up much less space than cans or containers of chicken broth. I swear by it :)

I would liken them more to lemongrass stalks than scallions. But a really pathetic stalk of lemongrass. I’ve been constantly disappointed with this summer’s CSA. (New farm for us.) But I wonder if I’ve just become jaded because the good produce store wouldn’t dare put out anything less than perfect when it has competition from places like Whole Foods down the road. That being said, the squash from last week is so small it could fit into a doll house collection.

This looks fabulous! Do you think it would be freezer-friendly? I’d love to eat two and freeze two, but I’m not sure if it would mess up the texture or flavor of the filling. (I know the crust should be fine.) Thanks so much!

I actually always roast the chicken when a recipe calls for it to be poached – I find that poached chicken is always slightly tough, while bone-in skin-on roasted chicken that is added at the end of the cooking process is lovely and tender.

So, I’d stick with roasting the chicken, but otherwise this looks amazing.

I’m new here – but I LOVE pot pies, so had to head here from a shared Facebook post. A couple things – blanching actually allows the veggies to absorb MORE of the goodness they get cooked in – opens up some pores or something. And – the pie-top recipe is VERY similar to my mother-in-law’s pie crust recipe, which is the best in the world – and it’s the only one I’ve ever seen w/vinegar. I’ve always wondered if that’s what allowed it to keep for a few days…

After one dinner when you all get a pot pie, who gets the extra? Hope you had a nice lunch…the rewards of being the chefess! Will have to make this when summer ends in the CA bay area. Right now I would only think of pies that are chilled in the refrigerator, it is that hot. But the time will come, because chicken pot pie is one of my husband’s favorite dishes and yours look delicious! Thanks for the update.

Do you think you could make these and then freeze them whole (a la those made by a famous Marie?). There’s a baby coming in a couple of weeks and I want some decent food in my freezer! (The sweet potato blintzes and black bean ragout from the cookbook are already frozen away awaiting D-day, but I’m looking for more ideas!)

We just made six pot pies with your previous version last week — it’s our go-to frozen dinner for our pregnant friends — and we made a huge batch for ourselves (due in Nov)! But now I think we might need to try out this version. You know, for science.

This looks like something I wish someone else was making me for dinner tonight. I’m also interested to know if you think they could be frozen once full made, or if you suggest freezing the dough and the filling separately? If not, I guess an option could be to make 2 for dinner one night, and have the rest the next night…

Freezing — I think you could definitely freeze the filling and unbaked dough separately. You could even freeze the dough in rolled-out circles separated by waxed or parchment paper so when you defrosted it, they were ready to go.

JP — Ha! Hoping to pass it off as the kid’s dinner tonight so we can order spicy Indian food. Mmm, baighan barta…

Baking in one big dish — Yes, should not be a problem. Look for an 8-cup dish.

Valerie — Yes! I used it for years and for some reason, I can’t find it at my usual haunts these days. I never liked it for soups where the broth is the main flavor, but they’re so great in broth/stock-as-ingredient recipes, like this, or to make rice-cooking water more tasty.

Time estimate — For this, I think you should give yourself 2 hours (from prep to taking them out of the oven) plus however long you need to get the meat off the chicken (this takes me forever, but had I used just 6 breasts, it would have been quick work). It’s a while, I know. The dough (10 minutes prep plus chilling and rolling time) could be prepared in advance. Also, if you have leftover cooked chicken (sadly, did not see how many cups 4 pounds was but I’d estimate 3 or more cups) you want to use instead, you could skip the chicken browning and braising steps.

Maggie — You can use that pie dough here, for sure. This one, with the added yogurt/sour cream and vinegar, is a little softer and bit flakier but either will work well.

Susan — Any ovenproof bowl or dish. Or, you can make minis in ramkeins.

I used to use the flour-butter roux all the time to thicken gravies and sauces but questioned it (and mostly quit using it) when the TV chefs insisted that the flour had to cook a few minutes in the butter to get rid of the raw flour flavor (which didn’t really taste as raw as they made it sound that it would). I love the texture that the raw roux gives the sauce and find it superior to the cooked flour roux. It dissolves so much better and does not lump in your sauce. Glad to see it used here.

Hhm, Deb, your sour cream-pastry sounds quite interesting!
We already have a great chicken pot pie recipe (with buttery puff pastry) but we’ll try this pastry next time: it really does look nice & flaky. And to be honest, the best bit about a chicken pot pie is when some pastry is crisp & some has soaked up the lovely sauce – yummy. N.

Helene — I think the crust would be trickier to modify than the filling (you could use olive oil or margarine). The crust should work with shortening but the yogurt… You might use a regular pie dough instead, using shortening instead of butter.

I LOVE when I find things I love about several recipes and get to bastardize them into a perfect food item love child! Yes! When great minds get together food wins (and so do my taste buds! Maybe my thighs, not so much…)

Deb, you are maybe the only person who won’t run in horror from this suggestion: I skin the chicken (gets flabby in the sauce anyway), chop and gently fry up the skin to render it. Then I use the schmaltz instead of butter, and purée the grieben into the sauce. Super duper chicken-y flavor.

For some reason, my boyfriend loves pot pies, so he buys tons of frozen ones. I’m cooking for him more and more out of sheer concern for his health. Maybe, because of some love, too :) This is great! It will make both of use happy and help him eat healthier, home cooked meals.

I love pot pie/warm comfort food season! These look yummy! On a vegetarian(ish) kick – might make these but (gasp!) leave out the chicken and add more veggies?? Probably keep the chicken stock though – the traditional flavors seem more comfort-y than the bean/chard version…

Also curious about freezing these… usually when I feel like making a large pot pie, I make one extra and freeze it before baking the whole thing. Do you have a recommendation for these? Freeze before baking?

I make lots of things and freeze before baking – lasagnas, casseroles, etc. Disposable aluminum loaf pans do great for this (heresy, I know). Works great and things don’t get all dried out. You just need to think ahead a day or two before and thaw as needed and then bake away!

I place a whole chicken with water, an onion, carrot, leek, bay leaf, parsley and s&p in a pot and gently bring to boil and poach for an hour or so – then remove cooled meat from bones and put bones back into pot for a couple of hours to make stock. Use the strained stock in roux to make gravy for chicken pies and there are leftovers for a soup base in future.
This makes for super delicious succulent chicken.

I LOVE your Pancetta, Bean and Swiss Chard pies, so can’t wait to try these! One problem I’ve had with the lids on the former is that they sometimes separate along the rim of the baking dish and fall into the pie. Any ideas why? Am I perhaps pressing them too firmly against the dish?

FYI, you have a typo near the end of the second paragraph, “…assumed I’d did something…”

Kim — Egg wash, I think. If you paint the rim of the bowl with it before pressing the lid on, it should stick. It still may drape a little in the center, especially if your vents are larger (mine always are), but it should stay attached to the bowl. This time, I, too, forgot to paint the rim and you could lift the lids off like saucers. Delicious, flaky saucers. :)

these look awesome! I love that there is no soggy crust underneath the pot pie – just delicious comfort food filling and a perfect crispy top. Now this is a chicken pot pie I would actually make at home – I don’t know why I never thought of making just the top part of the pie!

I have been looking for a chicken pot pie recipe for a long time, and this looks like it takes the cake. That crust looks so flaky! I just found your blog on bloglovin, and now I know I have to follow. Looking forward to more recipes to help beat the cold.

This sounds great…I made the chard pot pies from the cookbook just last week! Not my first time but I had forgotten how Amazing that pastry is. Amazing! I want to make a million things with that yummy pastry. ;). Will bookmark this for next time I feel like pot pie.

The last time I painted the rims with egg was for pot pie it required a sharp knife followed by course steel wool to get the residue off. The next time I just greased the edge and let the lid hang over the side a bit.

I love chicken pot pie – I’ll be trying this recipe soon. If you are ever in Seattle – try Pies & Pints, not far from the Roosevelt Whole Foods – I love all their fillings, and my kids love the mac and cheese. I’ve not figured out how they get the pastry top to dome. I find it really appealing.

Can I make the filling,freeze it in the bowls… and later remove frozen discs to plastic wrap and keep them until another day when I want the pies and I feel like making the crust? I assume I would have to thaw the filling before baking, but otherwise…would there be a problem?
I don’t mind longish recipes- but I do like to be able to do them over more than one day.

This recipe sounds great. Love the flavours and leeks definitely have an affinity with chicken. I’d make it with skin-off bone-in chicken thighs, though. Results in a more succulent meat and I’d ditch the bones before assembling. Thanks for the recipe. Love your thoughtfulness when you write a recipe.

Do you have any control of the advertisements posted on your site? I live in Richmond, CA and just saw here on your site a political ad slamming Eduardo Martinez, a progressive candidate for the Richmond city council who is being attacked with money from Chevron Oil with these horrible political ads. I’ve lived in Richmond for 20 years and know what great things the progressive members of the city council have done for Richmond. I was really shocked to see this attack ad on your website! I very much like your website but not this attack ad!!! Please look into it. Thank you. Paula O in Richmond, CA

In one of Ina’s recipes for roasted shrimp she explains why she roasts chicken: it tastes better. When you poach chicken in liquid a lot of the chicken flavor goes into the liquid and the chicken is less tasty. This probably also explains why she makes.chicken stock with whole birds and then discards them.

Re, making this dairy-free or Kosher — See my response and suggestions to Helene in Comment #45 above.

Sally — I do remember hearing that, but here, the chicken is cooked IN the final sauce, so the flavor stays, the chicken is very succulent and the whole process involves fewer steps. There isn’t a wrong and right here; I just knew I’d prefer it this way, hence the updated recipe.

Paula — Blech! I have some control in removing them (and will try to remove the one you mentioned), but I don’t often know about ads before they show up. It’s not like some Evil Politician approaches me and asks to buy your attention — these things are done in batch buys through the ad placement agencies I use here; it’s all very third-party. I communicate that I only want ads that relate to the cooking or home; stuff still slips through. See more here about the process and why ads show up, FWIW.

Hi Deb
Firstly thank you so much for your incredible recipes! I absolutely love every one of them that I have tried! I did your broccoli slaw last night and it was amazing! I wanted to ask if it’s possible to make this recipe dairy-free I. E. Cut out the yoghurt and cream?

Great recipe!
I read that some people are considering freezing the stuffing. I have found that any sauce containing a roux does not reheat well. The flavour is still there, but the sauce tends to split and so you loose texture and presentation.

This looks so yummy and I want to try it. I had an idea. I think roasted chicken is tastier than poached chicken as well. I could pick up one of those roasted chickens from Costco and use that to make chicken pot pie. That would certainly make it go a lot faster as well.
;-)

My husband won’t eat green peas so I am thinking that mushrooms and leaks along with the carrots and perhaps celery would be perfect.

10/7/14 Deb…love your website/blog. Myself a cook and pastry chef/baker…I certainly appreciate all your hard work that went into developing fabulous recipes. However, this will be my first criticism…if you want to call it that…I don’t really mean this as a criticism. We are vegetarian…there is no almost vegetarian. It is or it isn’t. Pancetta is a deal breaker as far as being vegetarian…I’m sure you know that. Should either you or any of your readers be interested in a vegetarian pot pie…what I do for pot pie is make a thick vegetable stew or you could even say a thick vegetable soup…onions, potatoes, carrots, celery, string beans, lima beans, fennel (yes there is more than one starch) peas, tomatoes and may even add a little pasta such as Alfabeto or Occhi di Passero…a very small pasta or may add lentils instead. I do different combos..use what you like…but, the multiple starches will thicken the stew/soup and they taste good together. You don’t need to make a vegetable stock as the stock is automatically made by all of the veggies. I start out by sauteing the onions, carrots and celery in olive oil with a little unsalted butter added, sea salt, fresh ground pepper and a number of herbs and spices which always include powdered ginger and powdered mustard both of which are very underused. Once all of this starts to brown a little…I want the caramelization…I then add tomatoes (if fresh tomatoes are out of season I use Muir Glen Organic whole tomatoes which I cut in half/thirds)..tomatoes & white wine create the liquid to cook the veggies in..if necessary you could add some water.. and then start adding everything else…slow slow slow cook….once it starts to thicken up I will then add the pasta or lentils which will really thicken up the stew/soup. I may even throw in a couple of handfuls of baby spinach at the end…I do add an additional layer of the same herbs used during the saute process…also, I may add a cup of grated parmesan or may have added left over parmesan rinds early on. Then I pretty much follow what you do for your chicken pot pie. It is outstanding…I doubt it would even dawn on anyone that there is no meat/poultry in this dish. I’ll keep following your web/blob….your book is wonderful!

Deb,
How did you know I was hoping you would update your chicken pot pie post? I made your swiss chard pot pies last Friday and we are still raving about how good they were! You are so right….it had the richest flavor with only 3 TBSP butter in the sauce. Since you brought up Instagram….that’s exactly how I discovered your recipe. I posted a photo of beautiful rainbow swiss chard and asked, “what should I make?” and the response was Smitten Kitchen Pancetta, white bean and chard pot pies! Thank you!
annie

I was distraught when I saw this post last night AFTER I made chicken pot pie IX from all recipes — it did still turn out fantastic. Then I read this recipe this morning — as to my SO’s dismay is now a habit — and realized we’ve come to a similar process as I’ve modified the recipe a bit. I’ve been trying to adhere to a One Pot process, which had me sear the chicken in butter then take them out,next cook the veggies and broth in that same pot. I love the leek idea and will definitely try your recipe next time.Keep it up Deb!

Jen (commenter 15), Deb, believe it or not McDonald’s in India actually created – and then removed, damn them to hell and back – a pot-pie-ish butter chicken dish. Yes, McDonald’s. No, I don’t think our country took to it in great numbers but I on the other hand – let’s just say sales of McDonald’s spiked in one particular outlet of one particular city for the year this was on the menu. The crust wasn’t just a topping but a full pastry case inside which thick, luscious butter chicken was baked and it was incredibly good; the crust was more parantha than pot pie, but flakier than many paranthas end up. I’d say give it a shot at home – and share the genius with us, please!

Ruby – the “Almost-Vegetarian” pot pie IS vegetarian if you leave out the pancetta, which is what Deb is recommending if you want a vegetarian pot pie. (I’ve had it both ways and it truly is delicious without meat, just like she says.)

Hooray for a chicken pot pie recipe! In need of a comfort food recipe to soothe my Midwestern ex-pat soul, I turned a few years ago to your Swiss chard pot pie recipe as a method for creating the most delicious savory pie I have ever eaten, which involved using some leftover roasted lamb instead of pancetta or chicken. I am humbled to say I know now what “happy” tastes like.

I have always loved chicken pot pie and have tried several recipes that did not meet my expectations. This one looks perfect and I can’t wait to make them this coming weekend. Thanks, and I love you site!

I’ve been adamantly refusing to acknowledge any other chicken pie filling except the base of your Chicken & Dumplings recipe since you published it back in ’07, but I do recognize it’s a bit fiddly. So perhaps this simplifies the process, and I should give it a go.

Glad to see the leeks and sherry from that recipe were left in here, but I’ll also be including the tarragon. Those three elements elevated that chicken stew to celestial!

Norma Reynolds–I often make the pot pie recipe in my 9×13 Pyrex dish, rolling out a 2-crust top into a rectangle. Just make sure you don’t over-fill, leave at least 1/2 inch space (or more) for bubbling while baking! This is an impressive dish for when you have guests or to give as a gift. Freezing works great–I have frozen 2-cup ramekins or similar size portions from the Pyrex dish and just re-heat in microwave or 350 degree oven on days when all you need to do is add a green salad. Also, I always add potatoes cubed small to the mix. A handful of left-over veggies, such as green beans (cut small like the other veggies) can be added at the end of the cooking. Deb, thank you so much for this wonderful recipe! The roux at the end is something my Hungarian mother almost always added to soups/ stews. It made the simplest veggie soup glorious!

I am not a big chicken pot pie eater since I never grew up eating it. But I just discovered my husband really loves them a few weeks ago. You have impeccable timing Deb. Now I know what to make him this weekend =)

I’m with Alicia – I often use chicken fat to brown chicken and pre-cook the vegetables: lots of it, hot, and then drain it all in a big colander while I get on with the next part (saving the drippings in the freezer for next time, so it gets richer, and richer, and richer).

For the pastry, it’s rather nice to crumble some hard feta in while you’re cutting in the butter. It’s deliciously tart-and-salty against the rich creamy chickeny vegetably heavenly filling once cooked.

Lovely little dishes – I think a big part of food should be nice dishes! I love Apilco – tableware that’s utterly ovenproof.

FWIW, I also found that my Ina sauce didn’t thicken the way I wanted, so I just reduced the chicken stock by a cup and all was well. I’ve also never done the blanching step and no one seemed to miss it.

I’d be interested in giving something with a little less butter a try because, much as I love Ina’s recipe, it is very, very rich, sometimes more so than one wants in a cozy meal on a weeknight. Perhaps the apex of butter overload was when I made Ina’s filling and served it over your perfect (and very buttery) biscuits. No one could actually finish his meal that night – it was just too much, even for people who appreciate the finer points of churned, cultured milk fat.

Re: freezing – I have frozen the filling and dough separately and had success with defrosting. In any case, I always make the filling a day before I plan to use it; the flavors come together nicely in the fridge, and then assembly is a snap.

Ha! I am excited that I may be starting to think like the guru of Smitten Kitchen… we made Chicken Pot Pie last night as well! ‘Tis the season I guess! My husband requested that we use biscuits (substituted cottage cheese for buttermilk to make them a little more hearty and cheesy for dinner – it actually worked well) on the side to accompany what became more of a chicken stew. I started with onion and carrots sauteed in olive oil and thickened with ap flour like a roux before adding stock and seasoning. This eliminated the butter issue altogether, thickened nicely and saved the added fat for the biscuits. (Although I am a butter lover myself!) I also added a bit of local homemade pork sausage (from the butcher) to simmer in the broth for added flavor! I am psyched to try your pastry next time!

Alyssa — I usually specify; for stuff like this, I almost always use a yellow onion. I tend to use white or red onions mostly for raw uses.

Kate — I thought it might have been weird to de-bone and chop seared-but-raw chicken, and I suspected it would take longer to cook through in the oven than the top takes to brown. But mostly? I’ve just always made it this way. The chicken does not taste overcooked when it’s done. I am a NUT about dry chicken and this is about as juicy as it gets, even the white meat.

I see it doesn’t seem to bother you, but it really bothers me so much how people feel so comfortable asking stay-at-home-moms and mothers who work from home “what they do all day”! Even if you didn’t work, taking care of home and family, feeding them etc, is a full-time job far more meaningful than the jobs that many people do at the office. And on top of that you DO work. I hope you respond to those questions with a characteristically witty reply, like “Oh, well my next cookbook is writing itself and my toddler can safely cook a casserole for his dinner, so yeah, I do nothing!”

I use frozen puff pastry for the tops when time is short and the pot pie craving is too great to ignore. Love the serrated edge on your pastry created by the white bowl. I’ve got the serving bowl version (from Crate & Barrel), and see that they have mini-bowl size. They’d be good for pastry cutting, too. http://www.crateandbarrel.com/mallorca-mini-bowl/s262757

Hi, Deb. I’m a big fan — love the cookbook. I’ve even earned serious kudos from my kids by preparing various of your recipes. This, however, is the first time I’ve commented and it’s because I need help! I’ve made the dish and it’s presently cooking.. 20 minutes to go. BUT, the crust was a nightmare. So, so, so wet that it ended up in blobs. I managed to get most of it onto my dish, but there was no chance that I could leave space between the filling and the crust. I basically had to plop it in the dish and hope for the best. I often have challenges with baking because I live at 5,500 feet above sea level and am constantly having to adjust recipes. Now I will honestly say that I have never been stellar at pie crusts of any sort. They are like my kryptonite. So, my question is, did I just not put in enough flour? Is this an elevation issue? It seems unlikely given that I’d not even baked anything yet when the problem arose. I’ve never made a crust with sour cream. Maybe I mis-measured. Who knows? I’m sure it will be delicious regardless, but the crust may dissolve into the sauce before it makes it out of the oven. Any tips for my next batch? Thanks for all you do and for any advice you can offer.

Susan I was trained in classical French cooking by a French chef and i can tell you there is another name for a raw roux. Yes, it must be cooked and simmering broth certainly cooks it. Browned roux has a different character and is on an equal footing. As I recall it was called a Beurre Manie, but the spelling may be off as I did not see it in print.

I freeze these all the time for my husband’s lunches ever since Deb’s first round got me on the kick. I throw the whole thing in a quart ziplock bag after it has cooled and they make wonderful single servings. People get very jealous of his lunches.

To me it is Deb’s crust that makes these amazing. Lots of fillings taste good, but the crust…. ahh the tasty crust.

I cut out shapes with the scraps and stuck them on the top, such cuteness.

My dishes are the kind I like for French onion soup and look like little souffle dishes. I got them cheap years ago at Ross Dress for Less

I usually make chicken pot pie after two things happen: 1) I have left over chicken and 2) I have made broth from the chicken carcass (and since we usually have chicken once a week, there’s always broth in the frig). Then I basically do what you did, but cook the vegetables in the broth, toss in the left-over chicken at the end and then thicken the concoction. Chicken pot pie, like a pot roast is supposed to be easy and comforting, not rocket science.

Payal, that’s amazing. I’ve been thinking about it since I misread Deb’s post title. Far too ingenious and delicious to not have existed already. I would certainly have been in line with you! When I eventually take a stab at it, I’ll share for sure but I’d love to see what Deb could do with it! Excuse me while run around the block a few hundred times before I start my experiments. Mmm…

Megan — Don’t worry about the egg at all. You can brush with milk or cream, it may not do as much but you’ll probably bake yours darker than I did, it will be no less lovely.

Results? — Has anyone made these yet? I confess that no matter how long I’ve been doing this site, I kind of bite my fingernails and hold my breath until at least one person responds that they made the recipe and it worked. What, me, neurotic? Anyway, I suspect this being a longer cooking project, nobody jumped in on a Monday night, but let us know when you do. All feedback is welcome and helpful!

I haven’t made the whole recipe, yet, but I did use the crust on your Tomato Pie filling (CA still thinks it’s August!) Wow! Great top crust. It was so flakey, almost like a faux puff pastry. I was reluctant to use the vinegar because I have a similar recipe that doesn’t use it, but I trusted the look of the picture and your expertise. Perfect crust for a top lid. Due to the soggy nature of cooked tomatoes, I decided to use only a lid and it was enough…perfect, in fact. I didn’t have to drain the tomatoes so I got all the flavor plus crisp, flakey crust.
I’ll respond to the filling once I make the entire recipe, like when CA decides it’s winter.

It’s Canadian Thanksgiving this weekend, and because I’m rebelling against the turkey dinner thang this year, this has just zoomed to the top of the list of possibilities! I’ve been using your sour cream pastry ever since I first made the caramelized onion/squash galette–it never fails to impress people Deb, so give yourself a big pat on the back from me. I’m a real pig for pastry though, and miss having a bottom crust–have you ever tried using the same pastry as a base, and blind-baking it? Do you think it would work?

Love a pot pie! Thanks for the delicious details. For those who commented about “beurre manie” (accent on the final e, my keyboard can’t do this) – Liz in post 115, replying to Susan. It means “handled butter” from the French verb “manir”, to handle. Related to the English word “manual”. So, it’s butter that has been handled, in this instance worked with flour into a paste.You’ve done it every time you’ve made white sauce (bechamel sauce), and yes, when you’re thickening a stew.

I made this tonight. It worked beautifully. I know it’s such bad etiquette to change a recipe the first time through, but I needed to use up some odds and ends in the fridge and ended up adding about a cup of broccoli to the pot with the peas. I also added the carrots early, soon after the leeks and onions, as I like them softer. I also only used 2 cups of broth. Gosh, totally bad form. I’m sorry! The crust I followed to a T, and it was really flaky and chewy- perfect for a top lid. Just one of these was very filling- even filled up the resident bf who normally eats 3 servings of everything. I’ve basically learned to cook from this website, which I found while in college 4 years ago now, and all i can say is Thank You!!!!!!!

Deb- you asked for feedback, so here it is. Made this tonight for dinner. Started with the crust at 5:00 and the pot pies finally emerged at 7:40 PM (to hungry husband and kids). Not difficult, just more time-consuming than I realized and would hesitate to make again on a weeknight, but a definite keeper for the weekend. I added the carrots at the end of the leek/onion step b/c I didn’t want crunchy carrots, but might’ve been fine to add with the peas. Used cream rather than milk. Filling is delicious, chicken tender and flavorful.
The only slight problem was the crust. It was very soft and wet, so much so that when I originally mixed it, I checked to make sure I followed the recipe correctly. (I had, weighing the flour rather than scooping into cups). B/c it was so soft and saw comment above (Erin , #114) about it falling apart, I actually put it in the freezer for 10-15 min before rolling it out. Then made the mistake of lining one bowl before the others were rolled out. (note- the instructions say roll all the dough, then place over the bowls.) I realized why- the crust softens quickly over the hot filling and begins pulling and sinking. (duh) So made the other 3 as instructed. Nevertheless, despite working quickly and putting each quarter back in fridge after rolling, once placed over the bowl, it started pulling from edge and sinking somewhat. I did brush the edges with egg wash as instructed, but my bowls have a thin edge that may have cut the dough, rather than allowing something to cling to. I was initially demoralized when placing in the oven, but trust me- despite some pulling and sinking on top of filling, the crust was browned and delicious. Not soggy at all. So overall a success and something I will make again. Declared by my very family as not only the best chicken pot pies I’ve ever made, but the best they’ve ever had.

hello Deb! I’m a new fan of your blog and recipes. I love the detail and tips you provide. I, like you, have been a big fan of Ina Garten for years. I’ve learned so much from her but this was one recipe I just couldn’t accept. I always thought it had a crazy amount of butter. Normally I’ll take her recipes and just cut down the salt but that’s about it, but the butter content through me off. Yours looks absolutely delicious and I can’t wait to try it. What would you think of baking the top crust separately? I was even thinking of making more of a white cheddar cheese crust from a cracker recipe? Maybe float on top of the chicken pot pie for the last few minutes to keep it super crisp?

Hi there Deb! Premade everything this morning. I found out too late that I didn’t have any sherry, but I used some Shaoxing rice wine instead and that worked out fine. I followed the rest of your recipe to the T. The dough felt lovely and is now resting in the fridge, as well as the filling, which tastes absolutely awesome! I never thickened a filling this way before by adding a paste of butter and flour at the end, so thanks for teaching me a new technique :) I’m sure we’ll have a very good dinner tonight, kudos and love from The Netherlands!

I’ve not made this exact recipe, but have previously made pot pies with various fillings using your galette crust. I’ve successfully frozen the unbaked pies to be cooked as needed as well as frozen cooked pies to be reheated at lunchtime.

A favorite comfort food from childhood were inexpensive frozen pot pies,two for a dollar, which we were allowed to take from the freezer and bake ourselves as we straggled in from school or on the weekends, one of the very very few things we did not make from scratch/on demand in our migrant/immigrant home.

I make my pies in fairly shallow baking dishes (maybe 1 1/2- 2 inches deep) so there is a high ratio of crust to filling, a bite of pastry with every spoonful!

I think that this is why my frozen unbaked pies work out so well. The shallowness of the pan/filling makes it possible for the frozen filling to heat quickly and be bubbling hot by the time the crusts are brown. I prefer the frozen unbaked pies because freshly baked. . .is freshly baked, but when I have prepared and baked more than what is eaten that day, it’s been fine to pop the dish into the freezer for eating another day. In both cases the pies go straight from freezer to oven.

It’s not hard to make a double recipe to freeze for a rainy day and it’s easier, actually, to put the lids on when the filling is room temp or cooled. I save the egg wash for when the frozen unbaked pies pies are just about to go into the oven, and brush the still frozen dough and maybe add a slash or two if the original one looks closed up.

As an aside, I used to keep circles of the gallette dough stacked in the freezer; I’d put one in to chill and not gotten back to following through for several days and found that it was easy to arrange the fruit or potatoes/sweet potatoes on the frozen dough, pull up the edges when it had softened, and pop right into the oven. I don’t know for sure, but it seemed frozen pie dough right to oven makes for a fantastic flaky rise. It’s what encouraged me to think that it would be fine to do the same with the pot pies.

You had me at sherry…a great addition I think. I normally don’t eat pot pie because I’ve never had good one until now. OMG, I/we loved it! Out of laziness, I planned to use a puff pastry crust but when realized I had all of the ingredients on hand, I made your recipe…thank goodness because it was superb!!
My only problem (which was probably my own fault) was that the sauce liquified a bit while it cooked in the oven. It was thick when I ladled it into the bowls. I did cut a vent so I’m thinking maybe I didn’t leave enough space between the filling and the crust? Didn’t matter anyway because my husband and I cleaned our bowls without one word spoken until we were finished. So good we couldn’t stop eating.
I also used large boneless breasts (because I already had them), cooked them in the sauce the same way just for a shorter period of time. These were Bell & Evans chicken breasts…so good, not tough at all.
If I were to freeze these, it would be before baking correct?
Thank You!

hallucigenia — Such a good point! Will update to note your excellent suggestion. (I mean, I know why this happened: I usually make the roux in the beginning of the recipe, thus with butter. Forgot that with my new method — roux at end — you have this option.) Thanks.

I made this last night, and I love all of the improvements from the old recipe. I found the texture of the lid was superior to the old recipe–much less brittle. I also liked the new flavor, but my boyfriend found it to be too sour. Any thoughts on how to preserve the texture, but take out the sour flavor?

Kitt — What a great idea. Once again, I am kicking myself for not knowing how many cups of chopped chicken this recipe yielded but let’s say we estimate 3 cups. I think you could add 3 cups of leftover chopped turkey when you add the cooked chicken back to the sauce.

Do you know anything about gluten free baking?? You see, your pot pie tops are my husband’s absolute FAVORITE thing and he just adores them and dreams about them and talks about them all the time. Then he got diagnosed with celiac disease about 6 months ago and was SO bummed when he realized this meant no more pot pie tops. I would love to find a way to make them for him again using gluten free flour but just don’t know where to start. Any ideas or resources you could point to to? I love how easy this recipe is to make and would like to avoid having to use a tedious puff pastry recipe. I know this is a long shot but I just thought I’d check. :)

May I say, “I just love you!” I am new to the joys of cooking (menopausal with time on my hands) and having a delicious time discovering and taking on recipes once very intimidating. I have become the baking mom, I never knew was in me, wow, really! I am inspired by your posts, how you share your stories, your recipes, your search for the best, your challenges, etc., and I will tell you that I look forward to your posts – well worth the time. THANK YOU!

Erin I live at altitude too, turn your oven down 15 degrees from whatever any recipes says. That is the only change to make for this one. Leavened foods are a different beast. The no knead breads do wonderfully at altitude, I believe Deb covered them here. No adjustment on those other than the temperature drop. Sounds like not enough flour to me. When my dough is to wet I plop in flour on a counter before rolling and fold it a few times. It should be about the texture of playdough.

As for the egg, my husband can’t eat egg and I don’t do anything to the rim at all or even to the top and it comes out great. Mine browned up fine. My filling touched the crust because I did not want leftover filling and I used a different one made of leftovers. It is less perfect, but absolutely tasty and wonderful still. Mostly it cooks over the edges a bit.

@kaytee #145 Trader Joe’s gluten free flour seems to work decently for pie crusts (and reasonably priced!), I struggled a little bit when I made one of Deb’s slab pies because it didn’t hold together as well, but for normal pies etc I’ve been quite successful.

I made these the other day for my roommate and my boyfriend and we loved it! I made one change though in that I plopped your favorite buttermilk biscuits on top and they loved it with the gravy. I love it with the biscuits because it soaks up the sauce, it’s how my mom made it when I was little (from the back of the bisquick box), and it seems less finicky than pie crust to me.

I made this tonight and I *loved* the stew. I happened to have some green beans from my garden so I threw those in with the peas and carrots (I figure, there aren’t really any rules when it comes to vegetables in stew). I did not love this crust. It handled beautifully, but it just seemed sort of heavy and greasy on top of my pie. My husband liked it, though. I think I’d make this again but maybe do dumplings or biscuits on the side (my husband bakes a mean biscuit) instead of crust.

Also, bravo to the people who suggested making the roux with the leftover chicken fat. That never crossed my mind, but I tried it this time and it worked perfectly. I’d definitely do that again!

So, not to complicate things too much, but I made this with fresh cod. So that could be one way to have it be kosher! I didn’t cook the cod (which was cut into 1/2 inch cubes) separately — just in the oven with the prepared veggies. I wasn’t sure how thick to roll out the crust — did I miss that in the instructions? I wasn’t sure my crust was going to work — it didn’t seem to want to roll into a ball. But after resting in the fridge, and with plenty of flour on the counter, it rolled out and baked beautifully. Loved this recipe!

I admit to not having any idea about the blanching – I saute the vegetables lightly in a little butter or schmalz for this kind of thing. But since pot pie is usually an answer to the age old question “what can I do with all this leftover chicken?” – that is why the chicken is made ahead. But this looks fantastic! And it occurs to me that I have not treated my family to a chicken pot pie in ages. I’ve been making chicken enchiladas (suisas) instead. But the weather definitely calls out for pie crust. ;) Thank you for another gorgeous recipe!

I, too, follow (mostly) Ina’s wonderful recipe. But here’s a tip for those who don’t want to fool with making the crusts. I found this in an old Cooks Illustrated book.

Using store-bought crusts, cut TWO for each pie. Brush the edges of the bowl with egg wash. Then brush egg wash on one of the pie crusts. Place the second crust on top of that (the egg wash is in between the two crusts). Now drape the crust over the pie. Don’t worry too much about crimping down the sides….they’ll droop by themselves. Brush egg white on top crusts and around edges. Cut slits in top.
Cover with foil for first 30 minutes (at 375). Lower heat to 350 and cook, uncovered for 20 or 30 minutes, until crust is nicely browned.

What I like about the double crust is: you get a nice crispy crust on top. But inside, the bottom crust touches the filling and stays moist. It’s doubly good!

Made this for Friday night dinner exactly as written (although I only had chicken breasts on hand so it was all-white meat) and it was awesome!! Perfect cold-weather meal. My only recommendation would be to fill the bowls much less than you think as mine overflowed and the crust got a tad soggy.

I made the lazier version of this last night because it was cold and rainy, we were hungry, and we wanted pot pie!! In fact I couldn’t stop thinking of this recipe since you posted it. I already had some homemade chicken stock in the freezer, so my idea was to grab a store-bought rotisserie chicken for the meat, use a frozen pie crust instead of homemade (i KNOW but I wanted these pot pies fast and I didn’t have any dough ready), and then make the stew as instructed just without all the chicken braising and such at the beginning. My local grocery was out of chickens last night, so I subbed in a pound of french onion and Gruyere chicken sausage from the butcher counter (mmmmmmm – it worked beautifully). Even with my lazy substitutions, this pot pie was GREAT. I can only imagine if I had taken the usual homemade approach. Thanks for another great recipe. And I will say – the sherry should be a REQUIREMENT except for those who teetotal. You could really taste what it brought to the dish.

You inspired me to make Gluten-Free Chicken pot pie last weekend. I didn’t have the cute ramekins, but I did do it your way, with just the lid and not bothering to try and do a bottom crust. I had a roasted chicken that I pulled the meat off of and then turned the bones into stock later. I was really proud of myself for getting three different dinners out of one chicken.

I didn’t have any shortening for my pie crust, so I used half butter and have BACON GREASE for my fat. It came out really good. I have a hard time getting a flaky crust with gluten-free, but having the kitchen smell like chicken+bacon for an hour was pretty awesome, and it turned out very tasty.

Is it possible to freeze heavy cream? I buy it and this half of it ends up going bad because I don’t have other plans for it : (

I made these nearly as written (my carrots were, sadly, used up without my knowledge, so we had some frozen corn along with frozen peas). Had I started earlier in the day with the chicken cooking and pastry-making, dinner would not have been so late, but the end result made up for the late hour.

The chicken stew was delicious, although I’ve decided I’d be okay short-cutting with leftover chicken to make this quicker to assemble. I will not, however, shortcut with the pastry. The pie crust absolutely made the pot pies, and I had no trouble with the recipe as written. I am comfortable with pie crusts, however. I’m just glad I didn’t default to my own butter pie crust instead, since this version added a tangy-ness that was just perfect with the stew.

My only other change was using mini pie plates (Pyrex brand). I’ve got four kids, and some are big eaters and some are not. The smaller size (maybe 3/4 cup?) allowed me to get eight pies, which worked well for us. I still have a quarter of the dough in my fridge promising me a lovely treat sometime later this week. :)

I made this semi-vegetarian last night for dinner, and it was delicious. I used one pan (this Canvas dish, a relatively deep, 6X8″ or so: http://www.canvashomestore.com/collections/cooking-baking/products/seagate-shepherds-pie-baker-in-blue) and substituted the chicken for yukon gold potatoes and a few mushrooms (maybe about 3-4 cups total). I skipped the chicken-browning step and just made it all together, beginning with the potatoes, onions, and leeks. I did still use chicken broth, however, since it is delicious. The crust was like a perfect, tart, flaky blanket. We loved it!

Macushla — Was your butter softened? No worries, regardless. It’s more about making sure the flour isn’t totally dry or it will leave lumps in the sauce (not that anyone will notice them with all the other stuff in there); when it’s a butter-flour blend, the flour melts in evenly as the butter liquefies.

The stew and chicken is phenomenal. However, I ended up in tears (yes, tears!) Because after hours of assembling this dish, I just could not get the crust to do what I wanted. I wasn’t sure how thin/thick it was supposed to be, and I found it to be sticky, and break easily when I tried to put it over the baking dish. Maybe it was because I was using a bigger dish, but it sank immediately into the stew. It’s in the oven now and I’m sure it will taste delicious, but wish I had better luck with the lid.

Made this for dinner tonight, and it was phenomenal! No problems with the crust, which was flaky and delicious. Since it’s just my husband and me, we halved the recipe and cooked it in five ramekins (because we realized we didn’t have the right kind of oven-proof bowls). There was enough filling for six ramekins, but I’m not sure we could have stretched the crust that far. The process was fairly time-consuming, but not a bad way to spend a Sunday evening — especially with such a delicious end result!

I made this tonight – so delicious! I used leftover turkey from (Canadian) Thanksgiving. I also had some extra crust and made it into little biscuits – which disappeared in about 5 seconds. Thanks for the recipe!

Made these tonight and they were amazing! I want to put those lids on absolutely everything.
Took a big longer than anticipated, but had I read the recipe in it’s entirety first like I know I’m supposed to…
My only mod is that I only used about 1/2 of the chicken called for – all thighs – and I found it to be plenty.

How timely. I just made Ina’s recipe last night and was shocked at the 12 tbsp of butter, but followed it to the letter. I too thought i had done something wrong because it wasn’t very thick, but after all the chicken and veggies went in, it was delicious. So I used 2 rotisserie chickens and made broth from carcasses. ( Your tip for thickening roux is how my grandmother taught me to make gravy 60 years ago!!!
I’ll def try your “skinny” version next time! Love your website!

Made this tonight and it was FABULOUS. I was lazy and just used puff pastry for the crust. :-) The filling was delightful and oh so tasty. It was quite time consuming. From about 4pm to 6:40pm start to finish. Not something I could do on a weeknight, but FOR SURE something I will do again in the future. The only problem was I ate so much of it, I am STUFFED. There will hardly be room in the am for your chocolate swirl buns :-)

I started with these Friday, and finished them today. I used chicken leg quarters on sale, and ended up with a pound of roasted chicken meat. Yes, I know I was supposed to simmer it in the liquid, but it was a timing thing. I finishd up today. I added a parsnip along with the carrots and peas. I’d thawed one piecrust worth of my own piecrust dough, and it made five tops. I left the other nude, and I’ll biscuit-top that one to see whether Huz prefers one to the other. I put them in little foil pie pans and they’re freezing right now. I ended up with six. I love the idea of throwing a couple in the toaster oven on a chilly night when we don’t have time to prep!

Deb, I made these wonderous things this past weekend. Absolutely delicious! I made the crust 3 nights prior to making the actual dish, and it kept well. I was worried about the consistency of the dough when i first made it – seemed too wet – but I followed the directions exactly (opting for greek yogurt over sour cream) and lo and behold! I had nothing to worry about. I even rolled out a bit to make a bottom for the pies. Half the recipe is now sitting in my freezer for a warm and happy meal in the upcoming weeks.
Thanks for a delicious and well written recipe!

Just a quick question: I love the bowls you made these pies in and think my kids would love getting their very own pot pie for dinner, do you know what size your bowls are? They look like they’d also work for French onion soup, fish pie, etc…
thanks!

I made this for supper tonight, and, despite burning my finger dramatically, will totally make it again. Three quarters fed three hungry people, and provided a lunch for a housemate, and the remainder is going to be frozen for later.

best chicken pot pie filling i’ve ever made/have! the chicken actually tasted good — so often it’s dried out and flavorless. i was worried about the absence of potatoes, but my husband and i didn’t miss them one bit. this is a winner. thanks!

My boyfriend “doesn’t eat pot pie” but on a hunch I made this last month.. Since then? He’s requested it every week :) Only change I made was swapping leeks for 1 diced russet potato (I put it in with the carrots) and pour it into a 2qt glass casserole dish because I don’t have individual oven proof bowls. Thank you, once again, for providing us with a yummy recipe!

Going to try this for Christmas Eve since we are hosting a bevy of family and I don’t want to be standing over the stove all night. My question is, what else can I cook this in if my dutch oven isn’t big enough? My Le Creuset dutch oven is only 3.5 qts and I don’t plan on investing in a new one (budget blown on Christmas gifts already). I have a Le Creuset deep sauté pan that is 4 1/4 quarts with a lid. Will that be ok? It’s not as tall as a dutch oven (only 6 inches deep) but same cast iron and enamel. Any advice would be appreciated! Thanks!

Made this last night- no leeks at the store so I skipped ’em, added one diced sweet potato in with the onions and ribbons of chard at the end. Baked in one big dish. Amazing!! Rave reviews from all dinner guests.

Stephanie — You can pulse the butter into the dry ingredients with a food processor. But I recommend then dumping the mixture into a bowl and stirring in the wet ingredients with a spoon or rubber scraper so it doesn’t get overprocessed.

So I have no idea how I’ve never made pot pie before, but this is totally going to be my NYE dinner as I bet it’s going to go great with lots of wine and champagne :)

On the crust though, unlike many here, I LOVE the double crust! I plan on making individual pot pies in oven safe bowls.. Would you suggest I par bake the bottom crust before filling them up? Most of the double crust recipes I’ve seen don’t require it, but it seems like it’s a logical step? Any thoughts for a crust loving gal? Thanks!!

If I want to make these to freeze for later, should I par bake, cool, wrap and then freeze, or just bake fully, etc.? I’m going overseas for a few months and want to leave some re-heatable food for my sweetheart.

I used buttermilk instead of sour cream or yogurt in the crust, because it was all I had. It was perfect – soft and thick and flaky. I could have eaten just that and been delighted. Also, for the sauce, I added a teaspoon each of soy sauce and tomato paste per Cooks Illustrated (was kinda freaked out to do this, but did it anyway; it did add a little depth to the flavor). I did not have leeks, so skipped that. With my bowls, I ended up with enough for five – used the scraps from cutting to fit pastries to form the fifth crust and had enough filling to distribute. Definitely a make again. My hubby declared it both “happy” and “restaurant fancy.” High praise from him.

So, yeah, I get grouchy when people give feedback after changing stuff, but… it was 99% yours and fantastic. Thanks!

I’ve made this three times now and with the addition of several tablespoons of dijon mustard, it is perfect. It is a wonderful Sunday meal as it does take some time, but the leftovers are worth it. This is the Chicken Pot Pie I never had and have always pined for.

Deb!! I’ve never made chicken pot pie before!! But I decided to give it a try – bf loves it, and it totally seemed doable…and it was!!! I took longer than most any human might, but I made the dough, made the filling, put it all together, and it’s simply delicious!! Thank you so much for creating recipes that aren’t scary, and that taste amazing!! Bf loved it and me too! :)

Betsy — What size are you looking for? I agree they can be tricky to find, especially because I like mine in the 1.5 to 2 cup size. Once you know what size you want, you should be able to do a search on Amazon or another cooking store and find something good. (I recently bought a couple dozen of these with dreams of a Pot Pie Party. But I also wanted them to be useful for individual gratins or desserts, i.e. not solely for pot pies.)

I have made this recipe twice and they came out wonderful both times. I used 10 oz pyrex dishes, as those are the only ones I could find at the time, so the whole recipe made about 8 smaller portions. The size was a perfect serving for me and my pot pie loving husband didn’t feel too guilty eating two :). Another fantastic recipe! Thank you Deb!

What a fantastic idea Deb! The strange thing is, even though we ADORE any type of savory pie here in Greece (from spanakopita and other phyllo pittas to tyropitakia made with puff pastry), we DO not have pot pies!
So this is a great way to try something really different and interesting. Being so popular abroad, pot pies must be really good!:)
We can’t wait to try this, thank you!

I started craving these the moment summer became fall, so I’ll be making them again tonight. Because I’m cooking for myself but want leftovers, I make a full recipe of the filling but only two lids. I freeze two portions of the filling to make later. The last time I made these, I happened to have some of your caramelized onion and gruyère biscuits in the freezer, so I baked some of those to eat with the leftover filling, instead of making new lids. It’s the perfect mash-up of two Smitten Kitchen recipes!

Hi Deb! So excited to try this recipe! We’re taking a cue from you in preparing for our upcoming addition and making a bunch of food to freeze for when it’s baby time. I adore chicken pot pie, and was wondering if you had any thoughts on making this in advance and freezing it? Any advice would be great!

I love your crust recipe. This is how I got my man to eat chard and beans! But because it is getting colder and we don’t wan’t to repeat Chicken pie, dumplings, matzo balls…have you ever thought about doing a biscuit topper?

Hi Deb! I made this recipe the third time. This time I didn’t have peas, substituted them for blanched fava beans I had in the freezer… The filling was delicious. The crust, I remember from last time, was the best tasting crust ever. Seriously, why don’t we make ALL savory pie crust with this crust recipe?! There must be an explanation for that.
I have to say that this time my crust slid off all over the oven. It was too soft and I kind of suspected that but didn’t want to mess with the numbers. I read through the comments and saw others complaining about this issue. Well, if it feels too soft, never hesitate to put in more flour with this one! Every batch of flour has different moisture levels, even if you weigh your ingredients (i always do) sometimes it just needs more flour. I’m a crust person so I was disappointed to see my delicious crust melt away into the bowl and all over the baking sheet…

Made this last night and it was amazing, the crust worked perfectly. I didn’t use chicken pieces, just chopped up a few chicken breasts to make the filling quickly, I loved the butter/flour technique for thickening the sauce as well, that was a new one for me. Thank you, my first shot at chicken pot pies was a huge hit!

I, too, was worried about the damp dough; I wrapped it in plastic wrap and put it into the fridge for several hours. I worried for nothing, rolled out like a dream. I just had to use a bit of flour and a plastic mat for rolling pie crust. I’d baked the chicken breasts the night before and added partially cooked cubed Yukon Gold potatoes and ½ teaspoon cayenne to filling. All this takes a long time so next time I would bake the chicken and make the crust and filling the day before, refrigerate everything, then assemble and roll out crust just before baking. (That crust was incredibly delicious; I rolled out the sections, place one on parchment paper, plastic wrap on top of that and so forth, wrapping top one well with the plastic wrap and kept in fridge.

It was a lot of work but so delicious. I can’t stand frozen pot pies, except for the small, expensive ones from Whole Foods (I guess those are refrigerated, not frozen!)

I made these tonight after your Facebook post prompted curiosity. I love love love your Swiss Chard and white bean pot pies; the crust is to die for! This recipe is currently in oven and I failed on the lids. They all fell into the bowls or off the rim. After reading others’ comments, I had the same exact experience as a few, such as Elena (135). I think the soft dough didn’t care for a sharp rim with hot steam? How can I avoid again? Meanwhile, the chicken component is phenomena!! I cleaned the pot! (With a spoon, not a sponge)

rainy day, PERFECT way to spend it – making these pot pies! wow – so good… first time using chicken fat and substituting the butter in the roux — what a taste! And if I were to really admit the truth – I fried up those pulled off chicken skin and pureed it with the flour and fat rendering… yup, will be making this again! thank you for this recipe!

Thank you for an excellent and delicious recipe. My daughter requested a pot pie for her birthday dinner last night and as much as I love to make a fuss over birthdays with Maryland in full-on snow panic I was not happy with the idea of attempting such an involved dish (on top of trying to prepare for the end of the world). The pot pie took some time to come together but was easy and my daughter (and family) LOVED it! And I was so proud of myself for making home made crust (bonus!). You are forever a part of our family memories of my daughter’s 12th birthday dinner.

I’m snowed in and I’ve been shoveling in the freezing cold all day. So, I decided to make these! However, I didn’t have small oven safe bowls, so we made one big one instead. I also just chopped up the chicken prior to cooking so no shredding necessary. This was delicious! It was so creamy and warm. The lid was so tasty. It was so fun to make our own pot pie and have it on a chilly blizzard day. Thanks Deb!

I made the filling yesterday and put it over your favorite buttermilk biscuits. It turned out delicious, even if my filling wasn’t quite as thick as I would have liked (I didn’t want to take the time to add more flour). I guess that means I had chicken and dumplings rather than pot pies! The only other thing I did differently was add four ounces of chopped creminis a few minutes after adding the onion and leek because, why not? If I were to make a biscuit-topped version, would you do it at the same temp and approximate bake time as the biscuit recipe?

5 of us enjoyed this recipe last night, served with a leafy green salad. Great flavor! I love what the leeks added.

I did make some adaptations based on what was convenient: threw in some garlic, 4 or 5 potatoes that needed to be used up, old celery wasting away in the fridge, and extra peas so I wouldn’t have an open bag hanging out in the freezer. We also used maybe half the amount of chicken, since it’s so expensive around here (and we’re trying to eat less meat). All that resulted in a lot less fat at the top of the stew, and I guess the potatoes already thickened it up a bit, so we added less flour.

The only thing I’d do differently next time is perhaps try boneless chicken thigh meat to speed things up. In my opinion, the browning and shredding of the chicken were the most time-consuming parts of the recipe.

We only used about half the stew/dough for our first pot pie, so we also have leftovers. Yay! I will brown the topping a little longer next time. It tasted really good but was slightly soggy on the bottom, which some liked (reminded them of dumplings), but others wanted more of a crispy topping.

Om Nom Nom!!! I wanted to make this on Monday for Pi day, but life happened and it didn’t get made until today. So totally worth the extra few days wait!

I’m not an apple cider vinegar fan (don’t like and am sensitive to the taste), so I used rice vinegar in the crust instead. Seems to have worked fine! I also baked a single pie. It cooked closer to 45 minutes but turned out great.

I really like the extra steps for fancy occasions, but I can also see streamlining for a faster weeknight meal. (I’m especially thinking of just adding chopped boneless skinless breast meat to the long simmer and getting rid of both the first browning and the skinning/deboning steps)

Out of curiosity, have you ever experienced the roux being all nice and thick before baking and then coming out of the oven back to thin and soupy? I don’t know if it’s because I had to let the gravy sit a bit between finishing and baking because I had to go pick up my husband, if it was because I had to bake longer because single pie, or maybe something else. It was still super tasty, but my husband commented that he wished the gravy was thicker…

Just made this with a gluten free crust (glutino brand) and subed all purpose gluten free flour (King Arthur)in the filling. I don’t like peas so omitted that and used more carrots to make up for it. Turned out delish.

Yes! I totally agree with the changes you have made to Ina’s recipe. I had all the same questions! Really that much butter? And why am I wasting my time and making more dishes by cooking it all separately! Love the alterations in this recipe.

Thank you for this delicious recipe. I love Ina, and butter too, but knowing how to modify the quantity of butter while maintaining the delicious tummy satisfying taste of this comfort food special is so so helpful. I have followed other pie crust recipes from your site and found that I can follow your recipes and substitute my Cup 4 Cup flour (Gluten free) and achieve near perfect results. I am looking forward to trying this recipe out!

I just made this tonight and it might be my favorite Smitten Kitchen recipe ever, which is really saying something!

A few adjustments:
– I added 4 baby yukon potatoes, diced about the same size as the carrots. I was worried they wouldn’t cook if they were raw but this was unfounded. Adding them the same time as the carrots and peas worked perfectly.
– I cooked in one big 9×4″ (ish? I’m guessing) was fabulous.
– I used store bought pastry, in my case, Leadbetters brand that came as a 9″ circle that I cut down to fit on top of the mixture.
– I had four leftover chicken thighs from a previous meal. I cut the meat off the bone and it didn’t come close to the 3 cups required in this recipe (which is why I added the potatoes). For this reason, I didn’t add the chicken until after the carrots/peas/potatoes step. For those worried that it would be overcooked after 30+ more mins in the oven, in fact, it was MORE tender than it had been, so don’t stress.

Also, I made a mistake early on when I added the milk (1%) with the broth/leeks/onions and had the heat too high. My mixture split, the milk curdled, and it SUCKED. I was freaked. I quickly threw in some butter, whisked it, but that didn’t fix it. What did was adding the flour/butter mixture Deb describes later. Even then I could see the tiny curdles but it did not impact the taste at all. If this happens to you, power through, it’s not the end of the world!

Finally, I baked for 10 minutes at 400 which is what my store bought pastry told me to do, then lowered it to 375 for another 30-40, just monitoring the top of the pastry. Everything else cooked perfectly, at this point I was worried about raw dough.

Final reply to myself (sorry, I wish I knew how to edit!): this was so good that this will be my go to recipe for any guy in the future I wish to say “I love you” to but can’t quite say the words yet. Delicious, comforting, and is KILLER with a side salad.

Ah… thank you so much for a recipe that made coming out of my first trimester cooking hiatus worthwhile! The family loved it and it’s getting added to our dinner rotation. I would have taken a picture but I used store bought crust (for the first and last time) and most of it fell off and landed in the bottom of the oven. Good thing looks don’t impact taste! :)

I made these back in January and they were amazing 👌👌 but wondering if you had any thoughts on making the filling in a slow cooker/crockpot and how I’d go about doing so? I have a baby now and the only downside to these little pies was that I found the cooking process a bit time-consuming? Just wondering 😬😬

I haven’t done it but I’d think that everything but the butter-flour paste could go in and cook and then you could thicken it in the last 30 to 60 minutes with it. If you could pre-saute the leeks and onions, you might get a richer flavor.

Took my first stab at chicken pot pie tonight, using my go-to recipe for crust and this recipe for the filling. It was a huge success. I was asked to create a double-crusted, traditional chicken pot pie. This filling recipe thickened beautifully and held its shape pretty well when I cut into the pie. We loved the traditional and chicken-y flavor and didn’t feel we were missing out on any indulgence with the reduced butter. Cutting the breasts in half worked well for me (easier to fit more pieces in the pot for browning). Thank you for this adaptation and for all of the great tips.

This was delicious. I made Ina Garten’s pot pie last fall and then yours last night. My chicken-pot-pie-loving family declared that yours is the clear winner! I agreed. The sauce and the flaky crust are amazing. Although it is still a time consuming dish it took me almost two less hours than Ina’s. The sauce very is rich but not as heavy. I made it in one oval stoneware dish and had left overs to put in two smaller dishes. I did not have any sherry on hand so I didn’t use it. And btw, I have made many many of your dishes and love them all!

I never bother with pastry making but used frozen puff pastry, Pinot Gris instead of sherry, and boneless/skinless chicken breasts that I had on hand (took them out halfway through the cooking time to avoid over cooking). Fantastic!

I made this last month for my husbands birthday, making it again tomorrow but with leftover turkey and homemade turkey broth from the carcass. I used Madeira instead of sherry because I had it on hand (we use it for gravy and it’s so so good). You and Ina are my two favorite cooks and your books sit in their own special section together. Thank you for making great food!

This was such a huge hit with my family and totally worth the effort. Thank you so much for this blog. FWIW, I think the reason for Barefoot Contessa blanching the veggies is so they retain a little more texture and distinct flavor. I cooked mine a little Long like a stew and my son thought the peas got too mushy. He’s a picky one but I might try roaring the carrots and just adding those and the peas right before baking if I get the energy to try this again. Thanks!

The pastry for this recipe is phenomenal…totally makes this recipe so much better than all others. It’s flavorful, with a tangy savoriness and a wonderful flaky, chewy texture. I used a food processor to incorporate the butter into the flour mixture, then continued the recipe as written – worked perfectly.

These look lovely! Can use this recipe to make a double crust pie (aka will it cook well)? Also, i intend to stock my freezer with a slew of comfort foods for those lazy nights ahead – do these freeze well? And if so, should I undercook a bit to allow for the warming from frozen cook time?

A casserole dish can be used with a single pastry lid. I am not sure how much meat came from 3 1/2 to 4 pounds of chicken parts, but theoretically you could add yours when the meat goes back into the dish at the end.

Really loved this recipe. I added tarragon (in addition to the parsley) as I really love that flavour with the chicken. Also instead of making a dough lid, I used leftover phylllo pastry, brushing melted butter in between the sheets (10 layers in total). Was a total time saver and actually makes for a lighter dish!

Heads up that this recipe can be made as one big pot pie rather than individual servings! I made it in a 9 inch cast iron skillet (I don’t have ramekins or oven-safe bowls), and it was fantastic. I halved the filling, which was an absolutely perfect amount. I made the crust as written but used only about 2/3 of it. So delicious.

So, so late to the party, but I have been on the hunt for good, multipurpose, oven-safe bowls since making this last fall. My current top contenders are the Hue series from Crate & Barrel, or the Fiestaware chowder bowl or small bistro bowl. It’s surprisingly difficult to find ovenproof dishes! (At least ones that I would consider bringing into my kitchen…)

My most recent purchases for pot pies for a party was a set of 8 or 12 of these. (The store where I bought them has closed, but this brand is sold through a lot of stores.) It’s a touch less than what I recommend (2-cup bowls; these are 1.5 cups) but they somehow still seem just fine. If you’re having people over for pot pie, you’re still probably serving a couple other things.

Love love LOVED this recipe!! It’s totally fool-proof and all the flavors come together so well. I’d only had pot pies from the frozen foods section before (yuk) and now I don’t think I can ever go back.
If I were to make it again for a weeknight dinner, I’d lighten this up. I feel I could’ve added a cup of broth and toned down the butter & flour thickener by about half. This will definitely give it more of a thick soup texture rather than gravy texture, and is totally my personal preference. This recipe is great and I’m saving it for another rainy day!

Looks delish, I love Chicken Pot Pie but I have never tried to make my own crust! Will need to give it a go next time. I usually make a few in advance to freeze.
You site is very inspiring to me, from a new food blogger!

I LOVE chicken pot pie! And, I LOVE the phrase “make in the same pot.” Most pot pie recipes are way too complicated (read that, makes for way too much clean-up) for me. I’m really excited to make this one, crust and all. I cannot wait!

I’ve made this several times, and it’s a great starting point. I find the crust far too buttery, in fact greasy, with 13 tablespoons of butter for 2 cups of flour; I’ve gone down to 8 tablespoons of butter for 2 cups of flour, with a slight increase in the amount of vinegar (and using vodka instead of water), but I don’t think 4 tablespoons worth. I also increase the amount of salt in the pie crust to 1 teaspoon.

Adding chopped mushrooms, sometimes green beans (fresh or frozen), and shredded kale to the filling means I can decrease the amount of chicken needed, which I prefer.

Just wanted to share that I’ve been vegetarian for several years, but I have been craving chicken pot pie. I made a vegetarian version of this recipe today and it was soooo delicious. Not a vegetarian pot pie with beans and chard or chickpeas etc, but one that tasted similar. The lid I made exactly as written. For the filling, I started at the step of saute onions and leeks. As soon as the milk/cream/broth (vegan mock chicken bullion) came to a simmer, I added the butter/flour mixture and one peeled diced gold potato. Then with the carrots and peas I added two thawed and diced Quorn brand naked chick’n cutlets. Turned out beautifully. Thanks so much for satisfying this craving!!

I followed exactly and my crusts were sticky so I added more flour so they didn’t stick to the rolling pin. They melted all over the oven as if the ratio of butter was far too much. What do you think I did wrong? I have never had a crust melt like that :( I LOVE LOVE what the sherry did to enhance the flavors and I want to try again. Please help.

I’m not sure except if there was less flour than needed. It shouldn’t melt all over the oven. And although these get soft fast, they should be firm enough to roll out in flour when cool from the fridge and hold their shape.

I made this for my book club this week. I made the filling the day before, then skimmed it and heated it up slightly before putting in oven. I made the dough and rolled and cut it the day before, and kept it in the fridge with parchment between each lid. I was soooo scared of putting on and cooking the crust but it turned out just like the photos, and very delicious inside and out!. Thanks Deb. I have already had a proud cooking moment in 2019.

These were outstanding. The only ingredient change was white wine instead of sherry. We had leftover roast chicken so that saved a little time. I thought the amount of leeks might be too much but not at all and I can see now why leaving them out would be a mistake. Pastry lids were particularly good and really not difficult. I made the dough early then rolled them out about an hour before I needed them and put them back in the fridge, covered, and popped them on just before they went in. We had guests so I didn’t want to do that while they were here. Everyone raved about them. Thanks!